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TMI Blog1954 (10) TMI 38X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... is Ordinance was repealed and Act XII of 1948 (hereinafter called 'the Act') was passed by the East Punjab Legislature re-enacting all the provisions of the repealed Ordinance. The claim filed by the respondent was investigated in due course and it was found, after enquiry, that the statement made by him was absolutely false and that as a matter of fact there was no land belonging to him in West Pakistan. Upon this, a prosecution was started against him on the 13th of May, 1950, under section 7 of the Act, which makes it an offence for any person to submit, with regard to his claim under the Act, any information which is false. The accused was tried by S. Jaspal Singh, Magistrate, First Class, Jullandur, before whom he confessed his guilt and pleaded for mercy. The trying Magistrate by his order dated the 20th of July, 1951, convicted the respondent under section 7 of the Act and sentenced him to imprisonment till the rising of the Court and a fine of Rs. 120, in default of which he was to suffer rigorous imprisonment for one month.. The District Magistrate of Jullundur considered the sentence to be inadequate and referred the case to the High Court at Simla under section 438 of t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... any penalty, forfeiture or punishment incurred in respect of any offence committed against any enactment so repealed; or (e)affect any investigation, legal proceeding -or remedy in respect of any such right, privilege, obligation, liability, penalty, forfeiture or punishment as aforesaid. " On the strength of this provision in the General Clauses Act it was contended on behalf of the State that the repeal of the Ordinance could not in any way affect the liability already incurred by the respondent, in respect of an offence, committed against the provisions of the Ordinance and any penalty or punishment consequent thereon. The learned Judges of the High Court negatived this contention by holding that section 6 of the General Clauses Act could be attracted only when an Act or regulation is repealed simpliciter but not when, as in the present case, the repeal is followed by re-enactment. The Repealing Act, it is pointed out, reproduces the provisions of the Ordinance in their entirety, but it nowhere provides that offences committed, when the Ordinance was in force, could be punished after its repeal. The language of section 11 of the Act, which contains its saving provisions, doe ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the Repealing Act had not been passed. Section 6 of the General Clauses Act, as is well known, is on the same lines as section 38(2) of the Interpretation Act of England. Under section 30 of the General Clauses Act, which corresponds to section 27 of the Punjab Act, the provisions of the Act are applicable to Ordinances as well. Of course, the consequences laid down in section 6 of the Act will apply only when a statute or regulation having the force of a statute is actually repealed. It has no application when a statute, which is of a temporary nature, automatically expires by efflux of time. The Ordinance in the present case was undoubtedly a temporary statute but it is admitted that the period during which it was to continue had not expired when the Repealing Act was passed. The repeal therefore was an effective one which would normally attract the operation of section 6 of the General Clauses Act. The controversy thus narrows down to the short point as to whether the fact of the repeal of the Ordinance being followed by reenactment would make the provision of section 6 of the General Clauses Act inapplicable to the present case. The High Court, in support of the view that it t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ct. In our opinion the approach of the High Court to the question is not quite correct. Whenever there is a repeal of an enactment, the consequences laid down in section 6 of the General Clauses Act will follow unless, as the section itself says, a different intention appears. In the case of a simple repeal there is scarcely any room for expression of a contrary opinion. But when the repeal is followed by fresh legislation on the same subject we would undoubtedly have to look to the provisions of the new Act, but only for the purpose of determining whether they indicate a different intention. The line of enquiry would be, not whether the new Act expressly keeps alive old rights and liabilities but whether it manifests an intention to destroy them. We cannot therefore subscribe to the broad proposition that section 6 of the General Clauses Act is ruled out when there is repeal of an enactment followed by a fresh legislation. Section 6 would be applicable in such cases also unless the new legislation manifests an intention incompatible with or contrary to the provisions of the section. Such incompatibility would have to be ascertained from a consideration of all the relevant provisio ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... , must necessarily follow. The truth or falsity of the claim has to be investigated in the usual way and if it is found that the, information given by the claimant is false, he can certainly be punished in the manner laid down in sections 7 and 8 of the Act. If we are to hold that the penal provisions contained in the Act cannot be attracted in case of a claim filed under the Ordinance, the results will be anomalous and even if on the strength of a false claim a refugee has succeeded in getting an allotment in his favour, such allotment could not be cancelled under section 8 of the Act. We think that the provisions of sections 4,7 and 8 make it apparent that it was not the intention of the Legislature that the rights and liabilities in respect of claims filed under the Ordinance shall be extinguished on the passing of the Act, and this is sufficient for holding that the present case would attract the operation of section 6 of the General Clauses Act. It may be pointed out that section 1 1 of the Act is somewhat clumsily worded and it does not make use of expressions which are generally used in saving clauses appended to repealing statutes; but as has been said above the point for o ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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